Manman-ji, Buddhist temple near Mabashi Station, Japan.
Manman-ji is a Buddhist temple in the Mabashi neighborhood of Japan, with stone guardian statues at its entrance and several traditional structures arranged around a central courtyard. The grounds sit close to a train station, making the temple easy to spot as you step off the platform.
The temple was founded in 1256 under the name Dainichi-ji and later moved to its present site in 1537. The move took place during a turbulent period when many religious communities in the region were relocating as cities and power structures shifted.
The temple belongs to the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism, which tends toward spare, unadorned spaces that invite stillness rather than ceremony. On certain days, people come specifically to walk through the stone guardian figures at the entrance as part of a blessing ritual.
The temple sits right at the east exit of Mabashi Station, so no extra walking is needed to find it after arriving by train. The grounds are compact enough to walk through in a short time, which makes a visit easy to fit into a broader day out in the area.
The two stone guardian statues at the entrance date from the Kamakura period and are recognized at the national level as cultural properties. On specific festival days, visitors are invited to physically walk between them to receive a blessing, a practice not commonly found at other temples in the country.
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